KU football dedicates equipment room to Todd ‘Leaper’ Williams: ‘He’s a legend’
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- KU dedicates football equipment room to Todd “Leaper” Williams after 55 years.
- Community honors Williams with ribbon cutting, video tributes and reception.
- Williams, a lifelong KU fixture, continues duties and says he’ll keep working.
After noticing Kansas assistant football equipment manager Todd “Leaper” Williams was the first to arrive for work every day, sometimes as early as 5 a.m., then-KU athletic director Bob Frederick presented the school’s tireless employee a key to Allen Fieldhouse and Parrott Athletic Center, where the football locker room was located back in the early 1990s.
Decades later, the 72-year-old Williams, who is celebrating 55 years of service with the athletic department, only needs a passcode to enter the new Anderson Family Football Complex where, starting Tuesday, resides his place of employment — the Todd “Leaper” Williams Football Equipment Room.
Williams — joined by family members, current and past KU coaches, players and support staff — on Tuesday afternoon cut the ribbon on the room that bears his name. Williams then attended a reception in which current football coach Lance Leipold joined emcee Greg Gurley and approximately 200 well-wishers at a gathering to honor Williams.
A video was played in which luminaries such as Mark Mangino, Ted Owens, Todd Reesing, Kerry Meier, Mike Rivera, Micah Brown, Chip Hilleary, Aqib Talib, Jalon Daniels and many others paid tribute to the man known best by his nickname from middle school: “Leaper.”
“He’s a legend. ‘Leaper the legend,’” Gurley said in beginning the proceedings Tuesday.
“As we know, hundreds of other players wanted to be on that video as well,” Leipold said, speaking directly to Williams during his speech. “You are a connector. Your disposition and attitude is an inspiration. Your loyalty to this place has been second to none.”
Williams, who for many years was the person on KU’s sideline to race onto the David Booth Kansas Memorial Stadium turf to retrieve the tee after kickoffs, from 1970 until 2020 didn’t miss a KU football home game. He still attends as many games as possible.
“When I meet Jayhawks from any era they always ask about ‘Leaper,’’’ current KU equipment manager Darren Hain said in his speech at the reception. Speaking to Williams, he added: “Your commitment to KU football is second to none, always representing KU football with character and class.”
Leaper’s brother, Sean Williams, helped his brother display his knowledge of KU football. During his own speech, Sean asked Leaper to name KU’s backfield that started the 1961 Bluebonnet Bowl. Leaper Williams had no problem rattling off the names of John Hadl, Curtis McClinton and others on that team.
“He’s touched thousands of lives. He’s very honored and humbled and so grateful,” Sean Williams said of his brother.
The Williams Education Fund, which is the athletic department’s revenue generating arm, was named after Sean and Todd’s father, uncle and grandfather.
Leaper Williams, a Lawrence High graduate who started working at KU at 16, emerged as one of KU football’s most recognizable employees through the years, overcoming a development impairment due to anoxia, a lack of oxygen to the brain, at birth.
Leaper participated in Special Olympic events for many years including clinics at Allen Fieldhouse. As Gurley told attendees at the reception, Williams used to be a regular at noon hour pickup basketball games consisting of coaches and other staff members in the fieldhouse. Williams was remembered for wearing goggles and a knee wrap and by his intensity during those games. He’d even quickly teach his pickup game teammates certain plays.
“He’s one of our all-time great Jayhawks. He has embodied all that makes the Jayhawks great,” current AD Travis Goff said in the video.
“Everybody in Jayhawk nation is going to thank you forever for what you’ve done,” current QB Daniels said in the video.
“No one ever loved the university more than you and your family,” former basketball coach Owens stated, also in the video.
Williams said Tuesday’s dedication of an equipment room in his name is the highlight of his working career.
“It was really good. There were so many former managers. It was really fun seeing them,” Leaper Williams said. “There were 150 people here and I really appreciate everybody coming out.”
“It was great to see everybody,” he added. “I’ll still work. I’m not ready to retire yet.”
In fact ... “we’re getting ready to pack everything up for the Texas Tech game this weekend. We want a big crowd to go to that game (Saturday in Lubbock) and to pack the stadium after that,” Williams stated.
This story was originally published October 7, 2025 at 8:28 PM.
